With the creation of the Online Gargoyle in February 2006, our school entered a new era in student media.

To help our readers better understand the OG's approach to journalism, we offered this brief statement of our principles, based on the code of ethics adopted by the Society of Professional Journalists. As we approach our third year of operation, we think this statement remains an excellent summary of our values:

• We believe that a free press is essential to a self-governing society.
• We believe that a free student press is essential to any school dedicated to developing the habits of independent thought and action among its student body.
• We strive to practice journalism that is accurate, thorough, fair, transparent, and independent.
• We seek truth and report it.
• We strive to minimize the harm that could inadvertently be done in the pursuit of truth, treating our sources and the subjects of our stories with respect and empathy.
• We act independently but responsibly, knowing that freedom of the press is not a license for libel, personal attack, pointless obscenity, or reckless disregard for the facts.
• We hold ourselves accountable to our readers, inviting comments and corrections, and we acknowledge our mistakes and correct them whenever they are brought to our attention.
• We strive to provide a public forum for the many voices and viewpoints that make up our school.
• We believe that a free exchange of ideas in the form of robust but respectful debate is the most effective way to pursue truth and cultivate the habits of independent thinking.

The OG allows the students of Uni to contribute in a myriad of forms. All Uni students can instantly become an interactive part of the Gargoyle. They can submit articles to the online editors to be considered for publication, post discussion comments on articles produced by staff writers, or just pass along suggestions for future stories or site improvements.

The editors will review student work on a daily basis, so these submissions can be posted on the Web site the same day they are received by the editors.

All of these features will make student contributions to the Gargoyle just a click away.

The editors encourage submissions about a broad variety of topics, but they will not accept material unfit for publication. The OG is a tremendous opportunity for students to better express themselves to their peers, and with this opportunity comes the responsibility to use this freedom in a constructive way.

The OG also increases the ability of staff writers to produce up-to-date, relevant stories. The online sports, news, features, opinions, and entertainment sections are updated much more frequently than was possible with the print version.

The benefits of the OG are clear. Now we ask you, the reader, to get involved and make this vision come to life with your own participation, whether it's submitting an article, commenting on a story, suggesting a story idea, or voting in one of our polls.

Journalism is no longer a one-way communication from writer to reader. It's a conversation, and we invite you to join us.